Javadi Hills | 6 Jun 2011

There have been a lot of posts pending, regarding quite a few treks. Here's one more of 'em

Where: Javadi hill region, Eastern Ghats, Tamil Nadu

Who: Srikanth, Vinay and meself

Srikanth was back to Bangalore after a while, and he was itching for a trek. A friend had told us about this nice place called Javadi hills in north Tamil Nadu, where she had earlier gone for some social work stuff. This fit the bill perfectly, as we had only one day at hand.

We boarded a bus to Thiruvannamalai at night. And then waited for a bus to Jamunamarthur (via polur) that would arrive at ~4:30 am..... We waited sleepy eyed for the bus.... None of us knew to read tamil. Except, Vinay recognized some letters, and we would try to auto-complete the words. All of us were experts in speaking broken incomprehensible tamil though. So we somehow got our questions across to people. And we could sorta get most of their replies as well....

There's always a stampede to get into these buses. So we rushed and joined in at the first bus that showed up around that time. We grabbed and blocked our seats, and were proud of our abilities in this field! But, we were on the wrong bus, which we asked and figured out in a short while..... So, we had to do this ritual all over again, until we were on the right bus. Luckily, the next bus we rushed into was the right one.

Around a coupla hours and we were out of the bus. (I forget the name of the place presently. I guess you can ask for melchapli[pronounced male-cha-plea]  and be dropped off at the right spot).... We filled our bottles with water at the village near the road, and asked directions to melchapli. And there was a big fat wide jeep track that led there. We followed the track religiously, assuming that it will turn exciting sometime later, when we could actually do the wandering stuff. We reached Melchapli even before we could complete the thought. And by that time, we drank the water we collected at the village, and it was downright horrible to taste. We saw a dried up stream on the way up, and then realised that we will not get any water anywhere on the trail. We ususally dont carry too much  water, cos there are always streams where you can get refills.... But not this time... It was the core of summer in this region

A little beyond and downhill from melchapli was kilchapli (keeL- cha -plea), where we refilled with some water (which tasted much better. But we only had 2 litres of water for the three of us. We asked the way to the ruins of the dwarf settlements (which is a mild tourist attraction there. And if you fumble long enough to hunt for words to describe ruins and dwarves, they usually figure out what you want and direct you).... And before long, we actually hit our destination: the ruins of the dwarf settlement on Javadi. And we were there by as early as 9:30 am, thoroughly dissapointed at the lack of challenge as well as the lack of nature, as most of the route we walked on established trails from village to village.

After dillydallying around on the top, and staring at the descent down the hill into the village at the base (but opposite side to the way we came), we decided to go down the hard way, carving our own route. It was getting hotter, but there was some respite in the shade of trees and shrubs. We were making good progress initially until we started getting dehydrated.... We added electral in the last litre of water. That got over quicker than the first one

Dehydration hit me first of the three.... i started cramping while doing some tricky sections.... After some time, my steps faltered, and i started slipping quite a bit.... Slowly went into a zombie mode.... Soon, the others started showing effects of mental stress due to dehydration. We started yelling at each other for no reason.... The village was easily visible to us, and we could hear kids shouting there....... It was that close, yet so far (pardon the cliche, but those words are exactly what describe it best)..... Finally, i just gave up and sat down, saying i couldnt take it anymore.... I gave them my gps, and marked the location at which i was gonna stay. And they would go down and get back with water.

I sat there exhausted, muscles sore from all the cramps, and slipped into delusions. Every few minutes i hallucinated that someone was calling my name.... And then, i slipped into a dream maybe where i was sitting at that spot waiting until the next day..... And in some i was in a much more crippled state, and was getting down like the guy in Touching the Void. When i woke up from that, i was so glad that nothing serious had happened..... I just needed water, which would slowly arrive, and all would be fine. The triviality of my situation compared to the one in 127 hours and Touching the Void, brought me instant cheer and inspiration..... With some more time spent with hallucinations and dreams, i heard the real voices of them calling out for me. I gupled down a litre and half of water in one go! (plus electral), waited a while, and then started down the descent through some thorny brush.

Soon we hit the village and gulped down more water. Then it was a long boring road to the bus stop where we had to wait two hours for the bus to come. We hitched a ride on a tractor until some distance. Then it was the bus to thiruvannamalai.

Thiruvannamalai was another big mess! There was some festival or some auspicious day, and devotees crowded the bus stop, waiting to swarm into any bus that gets in. And we were in no strength to fight for seats. We booked a room and went back to Bangalore the next morning.

That day definitely made it to the top 5 of the most exhausting days in my life.

Directions:
Bus to Thiruvannamalai. Bus to Jamunamarathur from there, via Polur. Ask for Melchapli(mel-cha-plea near Javadi, and the conductor will let you know at the right stop).

Head to Melchapli, then to Kilchapli (KeeL-cha-plea), and then ask for dwarves' houses and ruins). Someone called them 'pyramids' as well!

If you want to go down the steeper face of the hill like we did, carve your own way down. But here's our overall track, in case you need some idea.

The splattering of co-ordinates are either because we roamed around a bit in those regions, or when the gps recception was inaccurate due to interrupting foliage.

Current mood: Dehydrated just thinking about that day

Currently listening to: Given and denied - Poets of the Fall

Paithal Mala | 17-18 Sep 2011

After hearing enough complaints of me not blogging about many things, i thought i should put in some extra effort straight away and finish this trek-alogue and post it, before it goes into the ah-now-its-too-late-to-post-it state.

The crew:
Bejoy, Deepthi, Richa, Shanid and myself.

The plan:
Sync up at Kannur. Then a bus to Taliparamba. And from there to Kappimala. Then a jeep to however high up the hill the jeep track could take us. And then head on the trail, until we reach the top of Paithalmala. Find a way to get to the adjacent Purathoty mala. Camp somewhere near the KTDC resort there.

The next day, we would ascend the purathotymala to the north, with mostly grassy slopes. Then head eastward, on a mild descent through rainforest proper, but still stay on top of the hill ridge, untill we reach the next clearing. And all this would be on unmarked trails carving our own route, unlike the previous day. And we would go on further, on the day after that, to reach somewhere near Choma kunda or Thadiandamol.

And of course we expected rain, as we were doing a monsoon trek in rainforest. Consequently we also expected helluva lot of leeches. We went armed with high spirits, some deisel and salt.


The map above was sort of the limits to which we could stretch the plan, rather than the plan itself. The above marked route might take 4-5 days or maybe even more.

The way it turned out:
Day1: We reached Kappimala by bus through a coupla hours of some rather run-of-the-mill kerala views. We gobbled some food there, and packed some for the night. All food for future days were already packed. Then we hired a jeep to get as much up the hill as we could.

The jeep driver kept asking the locals on the way about the situation with the elephants. It turned out that elephants had messed up with some plantation and was driven back into the forest, just the previous night. He warned us about the elephants, but didn't obstruct our intention of continuing our trek. He informed us that there are a few kiddo elephants who could innocently wander our way, but we'd be in trouble if their parents saw us anywhere near them.

We finally got onto our feet, stuffed our socks with salt, and started moving. We were anxious, excited and all of those on-the-edge-ey adjectives. And when we smelt elephant poop, we were reminded to keep staying alert. The slushy terrain preserved a lot of the footprints of the giants as well. But, after some time we were all possessed with de-leeching ourselves that, we couldnt spare it enough worry.  The occasional drizzle, lots of uprooted bamboo trees, streams, slush and leeches later, we were out of the forest and on the grassy hilltop of Paithal mala. Roamed around a bit, soaking in the awesome views of moving clouds all around us, and headed to the watch tower on the southern end, for a pitstop. Enroute we saw the trail to a jeeptrack to get onto the adjacent hill, Purathoty mala, which we followed after having a yummy food break at the watch tower.

The trail to purathoty mala was more or less a steady gradual descent through the forest, which we hurriedly went through, so that we wouldnt be caught in it during the dark. We emerged out into the grassland again, and the trail led us to the KTDC resort. To our astonishment, we found a rather well tarred road there (compared to a trail that we saw in google maps). This meant that we probably should have gotten to this side of the hill by bus in the first place, to have more time on our hands to do the more challenging bits. Anyway.... it got pretty cold quick, and our mildly rainsoaked clothes didnt make it any better. We pitched our tent near the resort before it got dark. After a final leech check, we were all inside, 5 people in a 3 person tent. We decided to cram ourselves, as it would be easy to stay warm, and less of a burden to carry the extra weight of another tent. Food, some spirits to warm us up, and a lot of chit-chat and laughter later, we were off to sleep.

Day2: We woke up at 6:30 and went about the regular morning routine, but with thoughts completely on the exciting day ahead. This was the day, when the actual interesting part would start, as we would carve out our own way, and into nicer denser forest. We packed our stuff, coated our legs with deisel (for the leeches) and started out at 8:30. Our first goal was to reach the top of the hill we were already on, by a mildly steep hike through the grassland-ish section. Most of it was easy, as the grassy parts were easy to grip. The occasional boulders werent too much of a bother, as we could circumvent it (They were too slippery to climb on directly).... The occasional patch of the rainforest trees, were a bit tricky as it was really slippery. But we got through without much incident. There was an elephant trail more or less around the way we were taking, easily noticeable through the uprooted grass and plants, and a LOT of poop. The poop wasnt stinking much even after getting wet in the occasional drizzle, which meant that this shit wasnt fresh enough to cause us much bother. We kept ascending while drizzles and sunshine were battling it out. Soon, we hit the top and saw the majestic view of the overwhelming amount of rainforest spread in all directions. Although we had expected the exact same thing from looking at the google map, actually seeing so much of rainforest covering you in all directions.... is an awesome feeling.

Except..... we hoped to see a grassy hill top in the distance, towards east, where we would aim to get to next. The grassy hilltop was nowhere in sight (probably occluded by stuff closer to us). We had just done the easy bit of the grassland ascent. the core of the rainforest seemed a little daunting. We decided against going into it, because the forest we faced until now was really slippery, and our rate of covering it would be too slow to reach the grassy hilltop before nightfall. And there was no realistic hope of camping anywhere on the slopes within the rainforest either.

The weather up there was changing every minute. One moment, it was all clear and you could see all the hills to the distance, and the next, everything is all covered up, and the next it pours, and then some mild sunshine, except its much more feebler than the sun we are used to. A much colder sun. We, saw clouds approaching from both sides of a hill ridge, and then colliding and forming a single big blanket..... Much of all the amazing stuff was happening when i couldnt take my camera out to take pictures due to the rain.

We stood there on top, hoping there might be some spark of thought that would give some new twist. We grabbed a quick bite, and relaxed for a while. Slowly, and heavy-heartedly, we were trying to get down to the reality that we would have to head back. And then it rained. And it rained heavily enough to not leave any room for second thoughts. We still waited a while for the rain to subside though. We heard some distant thunder. And realizing that the peak was not the place to be when there is a possibility of lightning, we soon saw ourselves descending through the elephant trail. Many slippery portions, a few not-so-nasty falls and few thorn pricks later, we were down onto the road again. Then it was a rather dull walk down the road to civilization.

Directions: Kannur => Taliparamba => Kappimala by bus. Then a jeep to go some more distance up. Then followed the trail to the watch tower. Then the trail to the KTDC resort.

Alternatively, you could come to the  KTDC resort side of it first, through Kannur =>Taliparamba => Pottem Plavu (via kudiyanmala), and then catch a jeep.

And then we went up the hill we were on, towards north (and headed back the same way down)


We hope to get back to it sometime probably during late winter, so that the rainforest bit wouldnt be too hard.

Current mood: Lazy
Currently listening to:  Blue sky - The Allman brothers band

Sangama-Galibore-Muthathi trek (Jun 16-17 2007)

This trek was through some easy hills n valleys and some portion along the banks of river cauvery. It suited more of a romantic outing than a trek (we could have done it harder by doing some more hills). We did not follow the usual travellers' route (as usual!). We also camped at night in the jungle on a hill (Photos not taken during the 'interesting' night). The most beautiful part of the trek was the view from the riverbanks: hills flanking the river all the way through.

BubbleShare: Share photos - Print Christmas Coloring Pages.

Also, we had great fun discussing physics and mathematics throughout the journey. And especially the new technique by srikanth called 'reductio contradictum' i.e. The proof of the conjecture is "contradict me".

Credits: Some of the excellent pictures here were taken by srik.

Current mood: Feeling nice about a fresh surge of dopamine levels
Currently listening to: One - Metallica

Freakend getaway - Nandi (Apr 21 2007)

Workload low...... weekend approaching....... Some freak neurons in my head start firing....... I plan to go cycling to Nandi hills (from hometown Bangalore)....... A colleague says she wansa come too..... Route all checked on wikimapia, including pitstops on the way......

Everything packed...... 10 30 pm..... Just about to catch some sleep in the lab ..... People talk colleague out of it, scaring her with facts.... "Do you know how far it is? Its 50 kms from here? 100 kims to and fro! In one day, by cycle?!"..... I get pissed.... She is still in half mind to come..... But I finally call the trek off.... Or so the others thought....

Next day, 5 am, I start off from NCBS alone, with only 2.8 litres of water, and 1 litre of Gatorade, as fluids. I knew I'd need more, but planned to get them on the way.... It was still dark.... Apart from a few trucks that zoomed across, the six lane road was completely empty.... The air damp with yesternite's rains...... I tread slowly, due to lack of light and pools of water on the road at some places..... I go on cycling for an hour like this.... dawn breaks.... the clouds at the eastern horizon get a red tinge.


I cycle a bit further..... I get cramps in my leg..... I halt for a break..... Used a cramp relieving spray,,,,, Im contemplating whether i can do it..... "If i get cramps this early on the trek, I am defintely not going to make it"....... I do a routine check on all my belongings..... I figure I've lost my wallet...... I begin to feel that things arent goiung well.... Half mind, or rather 3/4th mind of heading back......

Talk to myself..... "C'mon boy, don chicken out! Its all still do-able.... Nothing has happened that will prevent u from finishing the trek (I had some spare cash distributed elsewhere, apart from my wallet). Go ahead! At least to Devanhalli (which is around halfway) and then decide..... I go ahead....... Amazing road.....


I cycle ahead..... I reach Devanahalli with full spirit..... Milestone reads 'Nandi 22 km'...... "When i've come this far, why not all the way?".... Little bouts of stopping for buying fluid food (bottled mango juice a.k.a maaza), water and also air for the tyres....... Long and tiring period of cycling, when the summer sun is roasting me..... At last the foot of the hill..... 8 kms to the top, through the winding roads.... Cant pedal uphill, pushing the cycle instead...... The heat is tiring..... no cloud cover at all.... Reach the top around 12 noon..... Im tired, yet happy about myself....... I overhear some ppl talking about 'the guy who came here by cycle'...... I feel proud too!


Girlfriend calls...... blasts me for half an hour for doing this..... 12:30....... I scan around the hillscape..... The view didnt live upto my expectations...... Some rest and 1 litre of mango juice(my lunch) later, i head to take my cycle...... Someone has let the air out of my rear tyre..... The pride felt a while ago is now lost, as i see the bigger scheme..... Someone offers to fill air for a price of Rs.10.... I have twenty bucks with me..... I have no choice however........ I buy the expensive hill air for my tyres.......

The descent delayed due to the incident, I head down at good speed....... Amazing hairpin bends....... Finally some cloud cover as well..... Enjoying the air hitting my face...... Plonk!....... Scrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeech........ My cycle is skidding down the slope..... hairpin a little ahead..... I see metal under the tyre rubbinng on the road....... Still struggliong to slow down...... "Has my tyre come off? And is that metal underneath, the wheel rim?"...... "Will i have to push the cycle all the way back?"...... I somehow manage to stop without falling after around a 30m skid.... I see that my mudguard is the metal that's under my tyre.... But how did the mudguard get under my tyre?..... Probably, the mudgard fell off, onto the ground, however still connected at the sides, then dragged by the tyre up, and rammed in the region where the breakes and stuff are..... I try pulling the mudguard out..... Stuck hard... Not coming out.....

Contrary to Melchizedek in The Alchemist, I feel "If u really want to do something with full determination, the whole world conspires against u achieving it"

All i need is a spanner to loosen the nuts holding the mudguard and ease it out...... "why the !#$@ dint i get my toolkit?"....... I try stoppin vehicles goin by....... Most dont bother to notice (After all why would anyone wanna be bothered on a picnic)...... A few stopped, but either dint have their toolkit, or dint have the right spanner..... I lose time..... I lose hope...... "I cant even drag it in this state!"...... I still try nudging the mudguard out....... Slow progress....... I've given up on tryin to stop vehicles...... Anyway, i use my brains instead of my muscles, and make slow progress..... Meanwhile, a coupla guys stop over and offer help..... They have the spanner i need.... they help me out....... Mudguard removed and chucked..... back brakes non-functional..... I thank them, and all of us are back on our own ways........... Amazing hairpins......... at last the foot of the hill.......

The guys who helped me out, triumphantly holdin the mudguard

A tiresome and uneventful, yet semi-scenic journey upto devanhalli......... I discover that the air in my rear tyre is very low, but not dangerously low........ I decide that i can manage it till the end....... I go ahead..... Empty my 10 remaining bucks on tea at multiple points on the way..... Now have absolutely zero cash on me...... I still cycle ahead.... cycling gets harder and harder.... I feel a repeated bump when im cycling..... I stop.... i see that the air has gone real low, and theres a wheelbend...... Around 20 kms more to go......... I push it on the level roads and the ups..... cycling on the downs....... At last reach the lab at 8pm with a badly disfigured rear wheel........ toatally exhausted....... but extremely happy.....

Moral of the story: The most expensive way to get to Nandi from bangalore is by cycle. Well, i spent around Rs.500 (excluding wat i lost w my wallet) for food, electrolytes, water and repairs.

On a more serious note: "If u really want to do something with full determination, the whole world conspires against u achieving it". But, if you are still determined enough, you can still achieve it!

Current mood: Bugged by reality
Currently listening to: It's not over - Daughtry